Ages
by nightsummer
Summary: Harry, burdened with powers he is still exploring, is destined to bring the world back into balance...but he doesn't have to do it alone. Slytherin Harry.
1. Chapter 1

At age one Draco Malfoy was the cutest thing Narcissa had ever seen

Prologue

At age one Draco Malfoy was the cutest thing Narcissa had ever seen. He smiled and clapped his hands at the funny faces she pulled when Lucius was out of sight. At age two, he had become a little quiet, but she was able to bring out the fun in him whenever his father was gone away on business. By the time he was seven, he hardly ever smiled anymore. At age twelve, he wore an indifferent, cold mask at all times.

Now, on his 17th birthday, Narcissa watched her son unwrap his pile of presents with a fake smile plastered onto his angular, handsome face. Several guests stood chatting with glasses of champagne in their hands in the elegantly decorated dining hall of Malfoy Manor. Lucius strolled across the room to meet her.

"He seems to like his gifts this year," Lucius commented unfeelingly.

"Yes." Narcissa agreed mildly.

Draco was unwrapping the last present when he suddenly stopped and held a hand to his head as if he was dizzy. He shook his head and returned to opening his new broom, the newest available broom, the Hurricane.

"Lucius!" Narcissa cried. "Draco…!" Her son had suddenly slumped to the floor in a dead faint. She ran to him and lifted his head off the marble floor and gently placed it in her lap.

"It has begun," Lucius said with a strange gleam in his eyes. Narcissa looked up at her husband apprehensively.

Chapter One

"Get away from me, you freak!"

"Oh, I assure you, that's exactly what I intend on doing!" Harry shouted back at his uncle, brandishing his wand.

"You can't use magic! Your freaky school will throw you out! Then where will you go, boy?" Uncle Vernon snarled.

"I can go anywhere I want! And now that I'm of age, I can use magic, which, now that I think of it…" Harry flicked his wand and his uncle flew across the living room and into the fireplace, his carefully slicked back hair standing on end.

"Bye." He said shortly, leaving his gaping "family" in the living room and storming out of the house he grew up in with his levitated trunk following behind him. Harry had finally reached the breaking point when Dudley and his friends tried to beat him up and Harry ended up breaking Dudley's nose. His cowardly cousin then ran to his parents, who grounded Harry for a month and would have sent Harry to his room for two days without food or water had Harry not turned 17 that night.

Now Harry was running out of steam, and he slowed down and reached into a side compartment in his trunk where his shrunken broom lay. Resizing it, he charmed the trunk to be weightless and lifted off into the air with it hanging underneath him. The warm air rushed by him, ridding him of what was left of his anger. He was leaving his past behind him now, and the Dursley's didn't matter anymore. Now, all he had to worry about was finding a place to stay until school started. Naturally, the first place he thought of was the Leaky Cauldron. He immediately veered off in the direction of Diagon Alley, realizing he would have to go to Gringotts for some money.

Hours later he arrived outside the Leaky Cauldron, tired and windswept. Moving tiredly to the wall behind the building, he tapped on the bricks and entered Diagon Alley. Once inside, he looked around amusedly. The place was emptier than he had ever seen it, due to the late hour. He walked wearily down the street towards Gringotts. He withdrew one hundred galleons and put them into his bottomless pouch. Thanking the goblins who had helped him, he somehow made it back to the Leaky Cauldron, where he paid for a room and collapsed onto the bed. He was asleep the moment his head hit the pillow.

He woke up around ten the next morning feeling completely refreshed and in quite a good mood. It had finally hit him that he was free of the Dursley's. He could do whatever he wanted…at least until Dumbledore found him. He yawned, stretched, and then went downstairs for breakfast in the same clothes he had slept in. He would have to go shopping soon, he mused to himself. The only ones he had were these rags from Dudley and his school robes.

As he spooned cereal into his mouth, he thought up a plan for the day. He would go buy a whole new wardrobe, then eat lunch since he was sure the shopping would take him at least half the day. After lunch he was going to see if he could find a place that could fix his eyes. He really hated wearing glasses, especially in the summer when they slid down his nose in the heat and got sunscreen all over them so he couldn't see properly. If he wasn't wearing glasses, he wouldn't have to worry about them getting bent or lost or shattered, and they wouldn't fog up whenever he walked into a warm building in the winter. Plus, he realized, it would be harder to recognize him.

Several hours later, he stood in front of a small building called Charlie's Visual Correcting Center. Countless boxes and bags of clothing and other necessities lay in his pockets, shrunk for his convenience. He walked in to the front desk where a young woman with shocking orange hair was busily writing things down and answering phones. He waited patiently until she looked up at him.

"Can I help you, young man?" she asked kindly.

"Yah, umm I was wondering if I could get my eyes fixed?" he asked awkwardly.

"Of course dear. It will only take a moment…let me see if Doctor Ambrose can take a moment to come in here and do that for you." She picked up her wand next to her and said something into the tip of it. A flickering image of an old man helping a little girl pick out frames for her glasses came up in front of the desk.

"Charlie?" she called. "Could you come out real quick and help this young man? He wants to get his eyes fixed."

"Coming, Lavinia. Just wait for a moment right here." Doctor Ambrose told the little girl. A minute later he walked out of a door on the other side of the room.

"So what is it you wanted? A fixing?" he fumbled around his pockets looking for something. "Now where did I put my-oh! Here we go!" he took a wand out from his front pocket. "This won't hurt a bit, young man. You might experience a dizzy feeling but that is just your vision correcting itself. Ready?"

Harry nodded nervously. He was rather surprised that this was such a simple process and that it could be done on the spot. He had expected to be put on a waiting list and made to come back a few days later. He hadn't expected to be treated so quickly.

Doctor Ambrose waved his wand and looked with concentration at Harry's eyes. Harry saw a blinding white flash and then everything went black for a minute. Before he had time to panic, his vision came back to him slowly. He took his glasses off and saw that he could see perfectly.

"Thank you!" He exclaimed, pleasantly surprised that he could actually see.

"No problem at all, young man. Go on over there and Lavinia will tell you how much it is. I must get back to work." The doctor hurried away. Harry chuckled at the man's absent-minded manner.

"There! How was that?" Lavinia asked him. "That will be 2 galleons and 7 sickles."

"It was much easier than I was expecting." Harry replied honestly, counting out the money and handing it to her. 'Thank you so much."

"You're welcome dear. Come back if you have any problems!" she called after him.

He walked back out onto the street, feeling refreshed and quite pleased. He had new clothes and he could see perfectly. No one stared at him anymore because they didn't recognize him. Except for that group of giggling girls over there…he looked at them, baffled. Why would they be staring at him they didn't know he was the Boy-Who-Lived? He shrugged and walked on, unaware that what had attracted their attention was his stunningly handsome physique which he had acquired over the past year.

Still ignorant of his looks, he found a bathroom and changed into one of the many outfits he had bought so he wouldn't have to wear those filthy rags his "family" had given him. He walked back out wearing black cargo pants and a green tank top with a black sweatshirt over it. The first thing he saw when he came out was a tattoo shop across the street. An idea formed in his head, but he dismissed it and walked on. Next to the tattoo shop was a sunglasses store and he excitedly walked in to buy a few pairs since now he could wear them. A few minutes later he came back out and saw the tattoo shop again. Shaking his head at his ridiculous notion, he continued shopping. He bought all his school supplies and a few more things, passing the tattoo shop several times. Each time, he shook his head and walked past quickly.

Finally, it was almost dinner time, and Harry was looking through the window at the newest broom, the Cyclone Velocity. He looked longingly for a few minutes before going in and asking the owner how much it was, only to be disappointed when he was told it wasn't available for several months. The fastest available broom was the Hurricane. Harry sighed and was about to leave when he had a sudden inspiration.

"Sir, are you sure that broom is not for sale?" he asked one more time, brushing his hair off of his forehead. The wizard looked closely and then started when he realized he was talking to Harry Potter.

"Well, I suppose it could be," the poor wizard stuttered. "But it would be awfully expensive, Mr. Potter. Too much for a young wizard such as yourself, I'm afraid."

"How much, exactly?" Harry questioned him. The older man told him and he carefully considered it. It would be the most he had ever paid for one thing, but he really wanted this broom, and he felt he deserved it. Besides, it wasn't like it couldn't afford it, after inheriting the Black fortune and the rest of the Potter fortune.

"Charge it." He said firmly, coming to a decision. The man smiled widely and took the broom out of the display, handing it carefully to Harry.

Harry walked smugly out of the broom store, the Cyclone carefully shrunk and in his pockets with the rest of his purchases. He walked one last time in front of the tattoo shop, pausing briefly to look at the designs in the window. One in particular caught his eyes, a green dragon with silver eyes. He stared for a minute before giving up and going in.

That night as he sat in bed reading a book he had picked up in Diagon Alley, he shifted uncomfortably against the pillow he was leaning on. His back was rather sore. He had gotten the dragon tattoo put on his lower back, and unlike regular tattoos, it only took a few hours to heal. However, the dragon kept moving around, and as it had only been a few hours since he got it, it was making him a little sore. The man who did his tattoo told him it would feel normal in the morning.

Harry smirked to himself. Whoever would have thought that the Gryffindor Golden Boy would have a tattoo? And not only that, but one in the shape of a dragon…which, he realized with a start, was in Slytherin colors. Well, he thought to himself, green and silver just seemed to go together, unlike the garish combination of mustard yellow and Christmas red of Gryffindor House. The thought made him think, though. He felt like he had changed significantly since the summer had started. He was just tired of pleasing everyone, and trying to be the hero. He was tired of everything, and it was time to let his true colors show through. The past year he had been growing snappish and angry with everyone around him, because he was never good enough for them, no matter how hard he tried. And, without him even making a conscious decision, he had snapped. It had happened gradually, over time, and now…

He was finally becoming who he wanted to be. After leaving his home, he felt like he didn't have to hide his real personality any more. This year, it was time for him to stop acting as a puppet for the old man, Dumbledore. Of course the man was like a grandfather to him, but sometimes he felt as if he was only being used to defeat Voldemort. He sometimes wondered what would happen to him if he killed Voldemort, if he would just fade into the past and never be remembered for anything except carrying out Dumbledore's orders. This year he intended on making a name for himself as something other than the Boy-Who-Lived. Perhaps he would try and improve his Quidditch skills enough to get on a fairly respectable flying team. He didn't think he would ever be good enough to be on a team like the Hadley Hawks, his favorite team and the team that won the Quidditch Cup last year, but perhaps he could make it onto the Chudley Cannons or something. Ron would be ecstatic if he made it.

Eventually he fell asleep, only to wake up sometime around 2am to a dull, throbbing pain in his head. He rummaged around in his trunk until he found a headache potion and tried to go to sleep, but after the pain went away he wasn't tired anymore. He took out his new broom and decided to take it for a test ride. He flew around for an hour or so before he suddenly became dizzy. Yawning, he decided to go to bed and flew back in through his window. As he leaned his broom up against the wall, the dizziness spiked and suddenly, his vision was fading and the world seemed to spin, the floor rushing up towards him.

He woke the next morning, still on the floor. Confused, he remembered the night before. He stood up slowly, as if afraid the dizziness would come back. Surpisingly, he felt great. He shrugged and got out of his pajamas and into some green pants with lots of pockets in them and a green short sleeved muscle shirt. He ran a hand through his hair until it lay obediently on his head, coming down to his ears. No matter what he did though, it still stuck out a bit here and there, but then again, it probably always would. He took a quick look in the mirror, then frowned.

He leaned closer until his nose was almost touching the glass and realized what was wrong. His eyes weren't their normal vibrant green. They were streaked through with blue. He gasped, staring into the mirror and touching his reflection as if he could change it back with just a touch. He went downstairs feeling uneasy but still in a good mood. Maybe the eye fixing spell had caused them to change color.

Later that day he went back to Charlie's Visual Correcting Center and asked Doctor Ambrose about it. The man looked at him strangely and replied that, no, the eye correcting spell had no side effects. He then asked him if anything else had happened. Harry told him about the dizzy spell he had the night before, and the doctor got a strange look in his eyes. He asked him how old he was. A bit confused, Harry told him he had turned seventeen the night before last, about 24 hours before the dizzy spell hit him. Doctor Ambrose looked closely at Harry's eyes and stepped back a bit.

"Simon!" He called. "I think my brother should take a look at this for you. He is a magical scientist, and I think he could tell you what is going on better than I can." A tall, middle-aged man entered the room as he finished the sentence.

"What is it Charlie?" He asked. "I was just reading a rather interesting book…oh I'm sorry I didn't realize we had company. And who is this?"

"Er, I'm Harry Potter, sir," Harry told them, realizing he had never told the doctor his name. The two brothers raised an eyebrow at his name but said nothing.

"He came to me yesterday to get his eyes fixed, and it went fine," the doctor explained.

"He tells me that last night he got a dizzy spell and fainted, and woke up this morning with his eyes a different color. Obviously he thought it might have been side effects of the eye correcting spell so he came back to make sure, but I have never seen anything like this. He says his 17th birthday was about a day before he got the dizzy spell." The doctor threw his brother a look that Harry couldn't interpret.

"Ahhh. I see. Hmm…well my only explanation," Simon explained as he walked closer to Harry and looked carefully at his eyes. "is that perhaps when you came of age, you had a power increase, which often happens about 24 hours after the actual moment you turn 17. However, I have never known eyes to change color except in very rare cases. I have a theory, but I will need to test it before I go telling you everything. Could you please hand me your wand?" he asked politely. Harry warily complied. "Now, could you try levitating this book?" He gestured to a heavy, dust-covered book on a desk in the corner.

"But sir…my wand?" Harry questioned.

"Just try it."

Harry shrugged and concentrated on the book as if he was casting a normal spell. He muttered the spell to himself and the book rose about two feet off the desk. Shocked, Harry lost his concentrating and the book slammed down in a cloud of dust.

"But-but I don't understand…I didn't have my wand." Harry whispered.

"That, young man, is wandless magic. I really think…no, it couldn't be…well we shall see." Simon murmured. "Could you try and blow this feather around the room?"

"I can try, sir." Harry frowned at the feather the scientist had conjured, trying to think of a spell that would create wind. He couldn't think of any, so he just imagined the feather blowing around. Nothing happened. Frustrated, he glared at it, mentally ordering it to move. A breeze began, then picked up, and the feather lifted off of Simon's palm and drifted in circles around the room. Harry let the wind die down and the feather floated onto the floor. Simon and Doctor Ambrose stared at him.

"Charlie…I think he's one of _them_." Simon whispered hoarsely to his brother, who could only stand there in shocked silence.

"Excuse me, but one of what, exactly?" Harry was beginning to panic. "What is going on? Why is it such a big deal that I blew a damn feather around the room?"

"An Alamari." Doctor Ambrose finally croaked.

"A what?"

"A being that controls the elements. There are only about five born every century, and I think-no I am sure, that you are one of them."

"Soo…what am I supposed to do? How am I like this? What does it mean?" Harry couldn't seem to get the questions out fast enough. He was disappointed when Doctor Ambrose shook his head regretfully.

"I'm sorry my lad, but we don't know any more. The Alamari have never allowed themselves to be studied, and very little is known about their species. However, I would suggest you try a few bookshops. There is bound to be something in them."

Harry left some hours later, still filled with questions. The doctor and his brother had tried their best to inform him on what he was, but they only knew so much. He distantly remembered learning something about them in his Defense Against the Dark Arts class, but he could only remember a few things. Professor Lupin had mentioned that they were a powerful version of a human being, believed to control the elements of earth, water, fire, and air. They were fiercely Light beings, with five or less born every few centuries. It had been longer than anyone alive could remember since the last one had lived. They had extended life spans, and the last one had died at age 766 after helping to kill the last Dark Lord before Grindelwald.

Harry found himself suddenly angry. Everything always seemed to happen to him. to have to go through all that he had been through, and then find out that he was some strange being that hadn't existed for hundreds of years…it was ridiculous! Nothing was impossible when it came to him.

He spent the rest of the day in his room thinking deeply and practicing controlling little breezes in his room, using little potted plants, cups of water, and the fireplace for his other powers. It took him a long time to fall asleep that night. When he finally fell asleep, he had strange dreams all night. He slept late, and went down for breakfast around 11. He sat at his usual table, drinking a mug of hot chocolate silently and reading the paper. A throat was cleared, and he lowered the paper to see none other than Professor Dumbledore standing beside him.

"Hello, Professor." Harry said, surprised and a little irritated. Was he to have no privacy for the rest of his life?

"Hello Harry. Mind if I sit?" Harry shook his head, thinking it would only make things worse to tell the headmaster that yes, he very much did mind, that he wanted to be left in peace, and to fuck off!

"Well, Harry. What have you been up to?" Dumbledore looked at Harry with that damn twinkle in his eyes. Harry knew that Dumbledore knew what he had been doing. Why did he even bother to ask?

"Well sir I left the Dursley's." Harry stated with no sign of remorse.

"I see. Well I suppose there's nothing to be done about that. You're seventeen now, my boy. The protection wards there are no longer of use to you. What else has happened?"

Harry hesitated. He felt, for some reason, that it would be a bad idea to tell the headmaster of his apparent heritage. Although, knowing the old man, he would find some other means of finding out. He sighed, growing more annoyed and bored by the second.

"I'm an Alamari, sir." Harry said in an emotionless voice.

At this, Dumbledore looked shocked, but the expression was gone so fast that Harry wasn't sure he had seen it. The eye twinkle increased. Harry thought dryly that one day that twinkle was going to blind someone.

"Are you now? Well that's interesting. An advantage to our cause, I think."

Harry resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the fact that Dumbledore was only thinking about the benefits this would have to the Light side.

"I have come to offer you a proposition, Harry. Recently you have come of age and inherited both the Potter and Black fortunes. With the Black fortune came two mansions. How would you like to come live at one? The closest one is not far from here."

Harry thought about it. He knew this was just a way for Dumbledore to keep an eye on him, but it would be nice to live in his own house and explore a little of what he inherited.

"Ok."

Dumbledore beamed at him. "Shall we be leaving then?"

9


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Before I start, I feel the need to respond to a review I got almost immediately after posting the first chapter. Normally, I ignore flames, but this was ridiculous.

"And here comes yet another Harry-is-a-Veela-and-Draco-is-his-mate or a  
Draco-is-a-Veela-and-Harry-is-his-mate hack that is found by the dozen on . I  
think it's notable how many authors opt for a nonhuman Harry story just as an  
excuse to churn out some boy-on-boy action.

I gather a creature Harry fic where he DOESN'T go humping another boy (or  
more) or the complete female population of his place of residence (though  
these fics are definitely less common) is too much of a challenge for most of  
the authors."

You have just accused me of having several things in my first chapter which aren't even there! There are no Veelas, creatures, mates, nonhuman-ness, or boy-on-boy action. Just thought I'd mention that. (Harry is a more pure form of human, not a cliché creature from other fics)

Okay I'm done. Sorry to all you other readers out there who had to witness my bad side. I don't normally react like that, but its 3 in the morning, I'm tired, and they pissed me off. In the future, don't be afraid to give me constructive criticism. And don't worry, there will be sex eventually. If you don't want to read those parts, skip 'em. It's all good.

Anyways, on with the story!

Chapter Two

Harry and Dumbledore arrived by Portkey in front of huge mansion. The land around it stretched for miles with no other houses in sight. It seemed to be in good condition, with large flower gardens surrounding it. A stream ran up to the door with large stepping stones on it for a pathway.

"Wow." Harry breathed, amazed that he actually owned this beautiful place.

"I will leave you to explore." Dumbledore smiled and stepped back to apparate back to Hogwarts. "I should warn you, Harry, that this place is very safe and hard to find. This means some might come to you seeking refuge, and I ask you to please consider them carefully before turning them down." He smiled sadly and was gone with a loud pop.

Harry shrugged off the warning, figuring whatever he was referring to would happen soon enough without him worrying about it. He had grown used to Dumbledore's annoying riddles by now.

He stepped slowly up to the great double doors and they opened by themselves, as if welcoming him. He wandered aimlessly through the entrance hall and through the ground floor. There were several informal dining rooms, one huge formal dining hall, and several other rooms such as family rooms and a study. He came upon a round room which could be nothing other than the library. It was filled to the ceiling with every book he could imagine, from ancient to brand new. The room was tall and round, with bookcases extending up several floors. He figured the library must be one of the turrets he had seen from the outside. Each floor of the library there was stairs leading up and little sitting areas to sit and read by the huge window seats. He could see he would be spending a lot of time there. He exited the library and went up a flight of stairs to find several bedrooms and another entrance to the library.

Eventually he came upon what he assumed must be the master suite. It had a huge bed with curtains hanging around it and was done in tasteful shades of green and blue, with the furniture done in dark mahogany and black cushions.. There was a large bathroom with a tub in it that was rather like the one in the Prefects' bathroom at Hogwarts.

He spent most of the day exploring the rest of his new home, and was pleased to find there would be plenty of things to do there before school started. There was a room on the third floor that seemed like a laboratory of sorts, which he thought would be fun to use. The fifth floor was the top floor and it had a whole room full of Quidditch stuff which he couldn't wait to try out. A flight of stairs could be let down from the ceiling, revealing an entrance to not an attic, but the roof.

Around six he went downstairs after unpacking his stuff into his room and was wondering about what he was going to eat for dinner when someone knocked on the door. Wondering why someone would possibly be there, he walked to the door and opened it. The next second he had slammed the door in the person's face. He stood there, shocked. Then he realized how rude he had just been and tentatively opened the door again.

"Err…sorry about that, but uhh…why are you here?" Harry asked his visitor, still slightly shell-shocked. He quickly slid a mask over his face, which he had learned to do over the last year when he was feeling annoyed with the world and didn't want them to see it. After all, the Savior of the Wizarding World didn't get annoyed.

"Hello Harry." Narcissa Malfoy responded smoothly. "I have a favor to ask of you. May I come in?"

Harry opened the door, a little overwhelmed that this woman whom he had never liked was at his door asking for a favor. The pale woman strolled into his house, looking around appreciatively, not quite successfully hiding her surprised expression. She made a gesture with her hand. "Come, Draco. I don't have all day."

Harry could only stand with his mouth slightly open as Draco Malfoy stepped into his house, his blond head held high and his proud silver eyes looking anywhere but at Harry.

Harry shut the door and waited impatiently for an explanation. This was not what he had expected on his first day at his new manor. He narrowed his eyes slightly, noticing that Malfoy's eyes were unnaturally silver. He shifted his attention back to Narcissa as she began to speak.

"Recent events have forced me to come to the conclusion that my husband does not have my son's well-being in mind, and that the life his father intends for him is not the one I wish for Draco to have. Nor does Draco want to walk the path his father marked for him. I do not trust the headmaster to deal with an issue such as this, and have decided the best thing to do at this point is to place Draco with someone I trust, who would do him no permanent harm…and might be good for his character." Narcissa's eyes softened as she watched her son's proud posture straighten even more at this statement. "I care more for his safety than my Lord's cause, which I am not so sure is quite as…sensible as I once believed. So I am asking you, Harry Potter, to please take into consideration taking into your care my son's welfare, and to protect him with everything that is within your power."

Although his face was a mask of indifference, inwardly Harry was gaping in shock. This initial reaction was followed quickly by a stream of questions. How did they know he was here? Why didn't they go to Dumbledore? Why trust him, of all people? This woman actually cared for her son? Did Malfoy want to stay here? What should he do? He knew he couldn't stand Malfoy as a person, but could he live with himself if he condemned anyone, even his rival, to a life that might kill them? Stupid hero complex! Why couldn't he just say no?

But he knew the answer. There was only one thing he could do. There was no way he could purposefully send even Malfoy back to a life that he hated and would kill him before he even had the chance to live his life.

"I suppose I could…" Harry mused. Narcissa's face brightened and Draco finally looked at Harry, clearly in shock at his response. "But you have to give me your absolute assurance that anything that happens here, or happens when he is with me, will not get back to the Dark side. Once he is living under my roof, he lives under my rules."

Draco's face darkened, and he looked about to say something angry, but Narcissa laid a hand on his arm and looked at Harry with a somber expression. "Of course we will agree to anything. I am only interested in making sure he is safe and on the side that will keep him alive." Draco opened his mouth to say something again but his mother tightened her grip and he shut his mouth tightly. Harry could tell he was pissed at the situation but would not do anything while his mother was there.

"Thank you." Narcissa looked at Harry without her cold mask on for once, and Harry saw a woman aged beyond her years, scared, tired and sad. Suddenly he felt pity for this woman whose destiny was already chosen for her when her parents arranged her marriage to Lucius Malfoy.

"Mrs. Malfoy." He said abruptly. "I have more than enough room for two guests."

Draco's eyes burned into Harry's, but he kept his gaze on the proud woman in front of him.

"Thank you." She smiled sadly. "But I am afraid it is too late to change my fate. I only wish for Draco to choose his own life. He will not suffer the life I have." Her gaze hardened.

Harry nodded. He had expected such an answer. "You are welcome any time." He told her softly.

"Thank you. I am sure now that I have made the right choice." Her eyes glistened before the icy mask slid back over her face. "Goodbye my son. I must leave before your father discovers I am gone." She stood before her tall son. Draco's face lost its sneer and coldness and he leaned forward to hug his mother. He had said nothing throughout the entire exchange, standing in silent resignation and dignity. "Goodbye mother." His long arms wrapped tightly around the elegant woman. "Be careful."

"I love you son. Don't worry about me. Don't make the same mistakes I did. Choose your own destiny, and do not be afraid to love or be loved." She whispered into his ear before she backed away. "I must go. Take care of my son, Harry Potter."

"I'll do what I can." He promised. She opened the door and looked back one last time, then set her mask back in place and strode from the house down to the gate. Draco and Harry watched her go, then turned around to face each other awkwardly.

"I'll show you where you'll be staying." Harry supplied diplomatically. Draco nodded curtly and followed Harry to the second largest bed room on the second floor where he left Draco to unpack and have some time to himself. The awkward silence between them was unnerving him. He went back downstairs and set about trying to find the kitchens. He had passed them at some point but he couldn't remember where they were. Suddenly, with a loud crack, a house elf appeared in front of him. Harry jumped, then raised an eyebrow. There were house elves working at the Black Manor? Hermione would kill him if she knew, he thought idly.

"Welcome Master." It squeaked. "I is Sari, sir. Sari is the house elf that takes care of Black Manor. Sari is sorry that she wasn't there to greet Master when he arrived. Sari was busy cleaning the house for Master. Master is coming on such short notice, it is surprising us, sir. Is Master wishing for dinner?"

"It's ok, Sari, and please just call me Harry. Would you mind making me something like spaghetti, and pointing me towards the dining room."

"Yes Master. There be several eating places. The closest one be that way" Sari replied, pointing with one finger before bowing low and then disappearing. Harry sighed and figured he would never get the elf to call him by his name. He followed the direction Sari had pointed in and sat down in the small dining room with a table set for four. The cozy warm atmosphere enveloped him, and he tried to relax as he waited for his dinner to be served.

An hour later Harry was walking to his library, completely sated and ready to research a bit on the Alamari. He had ordered Sari to send up a few dishes of food to Malfoy. He wasn't sure what he liked but he had seen the blond eat at Hogwarts and he seemed to be fond of chicken parmesan dishes, so Sari had brought up that among other things so he could choose.

Harry reached the library and quickly located a map that told him where to look for certain genres. He followed the map to the fourth floor of the library and grabbed several books that looked informative. He sat down with them on a table in front of him and tried to concentrate, but his mind was on other things. Like how all of a sudden he was living with Malfoy to _protect _him. How weird was that? And how he had gotten a glimpse into his home life, which was rather different than he had originally thought.

Eventually he pushed Malfoy out of his mind and decided to deal with him later. It was a big house, after all. He would hardly have to see the guy. Harry sighed wearily and settled down with a book called _Least Known Magical Beings and their Lives_ which was completely useless. It told him everything he already knew. Next he moved on to a slim volume simply titled _Alamari_. This book gave him some interesting information, such as how the Alamari had been in existence from the beginning of time, and about five were born every century as a kind of assistance to normal humans and wizards to bring the world a little bit back into balance. Every few thousand years one or more Alamari were born who would work together to bring the world back into almost perfect balance and rid the world of most evil so that the cycle could start anew.

The third book he found was called _Creatures of the Light _which pointed out that Alamari were not considered creatures, but a more pure form of the human race. They were believed to have created humans themselves, millions of years ago. They loved the humans, and lived and laughed with them at first, but over time some of the humans grew evil, and the Alamari separated themselves to protect their own race. Once in a while they would bless a wizard couple with an Alamari child who would enter the world and bring Light back to repel the Darkness. The rest of the Alamari population lived in another world altogether, far enough away to be safe but close enough to keep an eye on their beloved humans.

The last book he could find, _Everything You Need to Know About Alamari, _told him what the signs were of a child who would someday become an Alamari. It basically told him they would be on the Light side from birth, showing signs of unusual power at an early age. On their seventeenth birthday they would become full Alamari and begin to be able to use their powers. Sometime in the years after receiving their powers, they would meet the person they would fall in love with and become soul mates, which would double their powers.

Harry shut the last book, annoyed that that was all he could find on the subject. He was sure when he went back to school Hermione would be able to find more. He cast a quick wandless _tempus_ and saw that he had been in the library for hours. It was getting late. He put all the books back and grabbed a book called _Life As Told by a Quidditch Player _to help him fall asleep and then headed down to the second floor of the library where there was an entrance to his room.

A week passed and Harry never saw Draco. He almost forgot about the entire odd situation. The only way he knew the boy was still alive was that Sari reported that "Master Draco" sent all of his food trays back empty. Finally, after Draco had been staying there for eight days, Harry was coming out of his room when he saw Draco's door down the hall open slowly, then a tall blond figure stepped out and shut the door behind him. Draco froze when he saw Harry at the top of the stairs staring at him. After a minute he strode confidently over to Harry and nodded.

"Potter."

"Malfoy. Would you like to eat breakfast downstairs today?"

"I suppose."

They walked in an uneasy silence together to the room Harry usually ate in and Sari brought them out Belgian waffles with strawberries and cream, maple syrup, pumpkin juice, orange juice, milk, hot chocolate, bacon, and sausage. Harry and Draco ate everything they could and then sat back with full stomachs.

"How do you like it here?" Harry asked after shifting in his seat uncomfortably for a few minutes.

"It is…tolerable." Draco sniffed disdainfully, clearly wanting to say more but restraining himself because this was his host he was speaking to. He was actually more than happy with his new living quarters, but he wasn't about to tell Potter that. He had mixed feelings about the whole thing. On one hand, he admired Potter for being willing to forget their past and let Draco take refuge with him. He was also delightfully surprised that the manor Harry was living in was actually up to his high standards of perfection. On the other hand, he had spent six years supposedly hating the boy, and his pride would take a tremendous blow if he were to let that mask down now.

Harry narrowed his eyes in anger at the lofty response of the young Malfoy. He knew perfectly well that Malfoy was going through a rough time, but that was no reason to be rude. "Look, Malfoy, let's get this straight right now. I don't want you here and you don't want to be here, but we've got to tolerate each other for a while. While you're living in my house, you're living under my rules, and that means we're at least going to have to call a temporary truce. I refuse to be spoken to rudely or ignored in my own home, especially one that used to belong to my dead godfather. I don't know how you found out where I was and I don't really care. All I care about is that you either leave me alone or act somewhat decent to me. I made your mother a promise, and I intend to honor it, because I am not the sort of person who would turn away someone in need. So either be nice or leave."

Draco stared in shock at his longtime rival, who seemed to have changed over the summer. He was acting rather…Slytherin. And confident. How strange. Then he came to his senses and glared. "Fine, Potter." He spat back. "But as soon as I'm out of this dump, I'm back to treating you how I always have. A worthless Gryffindor."

"Fine with me." Harry shrugged, smirking inwardly at the fact that Draco was still gaping slightly at the change in him. He had expected his response to provoke some sort of violent reaction from Harry, not a casual shrug. "Shall I leave you to your own devices or show you around?"

Draco hesitated. He didn't want to spend time with Potter, but he wasn't going to spend nearly a month and a half in his room, no matter how nice it was. Of course he would never admit to Potter that his manor was better than Malfoy Manor. The point was, he needed something to do.

"Fine, Potter. Lead the way." He scowled. Harry grinned fiendishly and stood to walk towards the library. He gave Draco a tour, purposely saving the potions lab for last. Draco seemed unimpressed by most of the Manor, although the library and the Quidditch floor drew some of his interest. The library at his house was nowhere near this big at his house. When they reached the potions lab, however, he couldn't hold back a gasp of delight. Harry smirked and watched the blond walk slowly into the room as if it called to him. He ran his long fingers over the various vials and jars.

"We never had anything like this at the Manor." He stated emotionlessly.

"This is all yours to enjoy then. I won't be in here much, except to experiment once in a while. Use whatever you want. I have some summer homework to finish. I'll have Sari send you up some lunch and dinner." Draco nodded absently, already paging through some advanced potions books stacked on a desk. He had the feeling he was going to be in this room a lot. He had always wanted to experiment with making potions. Perhaps some day he could even invent a new potion.

Harry saw that Draco was in another world and decided if he left now the blond wouldn't even notice. He slipped out quietly and closed the door behind him.

Later that night he was curled up on a cushioned window seat in the room he called the Greenhouse Room, eating a delicious chocolate-chip muffin with a cheesecake center. The room was built exactly like a greenhouse except it was attached to the side of the house. Trees and brightly colored flowers filled the area and a soft green light filtered through the leaves covering the glass ceiling. It was dark outside but the room was magically lit up with artificial sunlight. Harry leaned his head against the clear glass and sighed. His life was already so crazy, but now? Now Draco Malfoy-_Draco Malfoy!_ - was in his house! Living with him, Harry Potter! Using his _potions lab! _

Just as he finished his muffin he was jolted out of his thoughts by Draco himself. The tall aristocrat walked into the room and looked coldly at Harry.

"Is there something you want?" Harry asked in an icy voice.

"As a matter of fact, yes." Malfoy paused. "I just wanted to say thank you for letting me stay here and for the use of your lab."

Harry hid his surprise. "You're welcome."

The blond turned to go, then spun on his heel and walked back to Harry. "And I was wondering…never mind." He seemed more hesitant than Harry had ever seen him. Mentally shaking his head, Harry deduced that obviously the blond wanted something, and that something was rather important to him if he was willing to risk his host's wrath for asking for whatever it was.

"You were wondering…?" Harry mocked. "You were wondering if maybe a friend or two could come stay here with you so you won't be lonely and so they can have a chance at their own life too?" He guessed.

Draco's jaw dropped uncharacteristically. What was _wrong_ with Potter? How could he have possibly known that? And why was he smirking like that? Draco realized his mouth was still open and quickly closed it, regaining his composure. "Why would you say something like that?"

"Well? Which one is it? Crabbe? Goyle? Parkinson?"

"Those buffoons?" Malfoy sneered. "As if. They like being under the control of a maniac. They have no brains. No. I was thinking more along the lines of…Blaise Zabini."

"Ahhh. Zabini." WHAT? Another slimy Slytherin…oh gods what was the world coming to…

Draco studied his rival's face carefully. The tanned features showed nothing. Draco frowned. He was usually good at reading people. Potter had changed…

"Yes, Blaise. He is my closest friend and I can't leave him to suffer the same fate I might have had you not…" He stopped.

"I see." Harry waved him off wearily. "He can have the room on the other side of the guest bathroom next to your room."

"Thank…you." Draco said stiffly, turning to leave without another word. Stopping just outside the room, he tilted his head slightly, then continued walking. If he hadn't known better, he would have sworn that he could hear Potter muttering to himself about how stupid he was…

"Argh!" Harry banged his head heavily on the glass. "What the bloody hell was I thinking? What is _wrong_ with me?" he unknowingly echoed Draco's thoughts. "Two Slytherins…oh Merlin I'm in for it now…"

9


	3. Chapter 3

Alright so, I would just like to take a moment to thank all of my reviewers profusely for giving me much constructive criticism and encouragement to go on with the story. I plan on adding a few things to the first two chapters and revising them a little bit, but honestly, thank you, because I didn't even think of these things until you brought them up. On with the story!

Chapter Three

The next day, it was raining heavily throughout the day. Harry took it as a sign that he was doomed. He moped around sullenly all day and moaned inwardly when the doorbell rang. "Hey Malfoy! Zabini is here and I'm not answering the door so get your pale arse down here!"

Draco appeared behind him. "How would you know if my arse is pale, Potter?" He smirked nastily.

"Unless you sit out in the sun to tan it…" Harry muttered under his breath. Draco let out a startled chuckle.

"You know Potter, that was almost funny." He reached the grand double doors and pulled them open to admit a soaked Blaise.

"Took you long enough." the Italian snapped as he stepped inside and shook his head, water droplets flying everywhere.

"Nice to see you too Blaise." came the sarcastic reply. "Ugh. Stop shaking your head like a wet dog, you're getting rainwater on my new pants."

"Like I care." Blaise retorted, his expression turning serious. "Hey. Thanks for asking if I could come and stay. I don't know what might have happened if-"

"Don't thank me. Thank Scarhead over there." He gestured to Harry who was watching them from the staircase where he held a book in his hand, clearly on the way back from the library. Blaise nodded.

"Hey Potter. Thanks for…you know. Letting me stay here and stuff."

"Don't remind me." was the bitter answer. He muttered something under his breath which sounded suspiciously like "Stupid hero complex. Can't ever just let people die like they're supposed to. Stupid, stupid…"as he wandered off.

Blaise watched the Boy Wonder leave their sight with a surprised look on his face. "What an odd boy. Why is he letting us stay here anyways?"

Draco chuckled. "Like he said. Hero complex. Couldn't stand the thought of letting us go through suffering and all that. Must be a Gryffindor thing."

"Must be." Blaise agreed. "In any case, it has forced me to entirely reevaluate my opinion of Potter."

Draco made a face. "Me too. I don't know what to think of it."

"So where am I staying?" Blaise changed the topic in case Harry was listening. Draco caught on quickly.

"Here I'll show you. And before you even ask, no, I am not going to help you carry your bags."

Draco and Blaise spent the rest of the week in either the library or the potions lab. Once Draco had told Blaise about the Quidditch floor, he had wanted to go try it out immediately but the weather wouldn't allow. It rained constantly for an entire week. They didn't see much of Harry, who avoided them as much as possible and hardly spoke to them except to make sure they had everything they needed. This behavior left Draco and Blaise puzzled. It was as if Harry was scared of them for some reason. Of course Draco insisted this was because he was indeed scared of a powerful wizard like himself, but Blaise just rolled his eyes and kept his suspicions to himself.

The day the rain stopped, Draco and Blaise were heading down to breakfast in a good mood when Harry approached them.

"Hello," he greeted them coolly. They nodded back and waited for him to continue. He took a deep breath. "I have spent the last week thinking about this situation we have here, and I have come to a decision. I know I don't trust you, at least not yet, and I don't know when or if I ever will. But for now, we're stuck in this house together, and I'm sure Dumbledore will be checking in on us regularly to make sure we didn't kill each other. So the point is…I would like to try and get along."

"Get along with you?" Draco sneered. "The person who turned down my friendship seven years ago and then treated me like shit up until now?"

"Draco…" Blaise said warningly.

"No." Harry stopped him. "I get it. He doesn't want to be friends with a Gryffindor. Goody-two-shoes Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived. That's alright with me. It goes both ways. I don't particularly want to be friends with someone who made my life hell for six years, but I'm willing to try because it seems like you really wanted my attention, and knowing you there was some superior reason for all that." Harry held up a hand to stop Draco, who was about to protest. Secretly, Draco was amazed that Potter had even seen through his many facades to the boy underneath who wanted help. Nevertheless, his pride urged him to argue.

"But," Harry continued, "If you think for one second you're going to stay here and terrorize me in my own home while I do nothing in my pity for you, you're wrong. Dead wrong." He stepped up closer to Draco until their faces were inches apart. "So you've got two options. Either we can try and put aside our differences and possibly live through this with as little pain as possible, OR I can put you to work de-gnoming the garden."

Stunned, Draco took a small step back. Potter's breath was hot on his face and the cinnamon smell was making it hard for him to concentrate. Attempting to bring back his sneer, he looked coolly back at his enemy and stayed silent.

"We'll try." Blaise promised, looking nervously at the Ice Prince. "But I can't guarantee anything. After all, he's right."

"Of course I am." Draco replied loftily. "I always am."

Blaise and Harry snorted at the same time and then glared at each other. Then Harry remembered why he was talking to them in the first place and softened his expression a little. But only a little.

That day, they ate breakfast together in a surprisingly companionable silence. After eating a delicious buffet of strawberry crepes and whipped cream, Blaise hesitated, then asked, "Hey Po-Harry, do you think we could go for a fly? Me and Draco, I mean."

Harry shrugged. "Sure. Actually, I've been wanting to go for a fly myself and I was gonna go for one today anyways. I guess you guys can come too."

Draco perked up at the idea of flying again. Of course maybe it had something to do with the fact that he had the newest broom and knew that Potter couldn't possibly beat him on his Hurricane with his dumb Firebolt.

They climbed the stairs up to the top floor and Harry lent Blaise his Firebolt.

"Giving up your broom? Too good to fly with us, Potter?" Draco said, with more curiosity than malice.

"No, I just got a new broom." Harry rolled his eyes.

"Well where is it?" Draco asked as he took his shrunken broom out of the pocket of his baggy blue jeans and resized it. Then he realized he had accidentally forgotten to use his wand and hoped fervently that Harry hadn't noticed.

"Same place as yours." Harry pulled his own broom out of his green cargo pants. "Nice broom by the way. Hurricane?"

"Yes." Draco said proudly. "Newest broom on the market…" He trailed off. "What is that? What is THAT? WHAT THE BLOODY HELL IS THAT?!" His voice got higher and louder as he realized exactly what Harry was holding.

Harry had resized his Cyclone and Draco was staring at it with a mixture of annoyance and longing.

"Br-oom, Draco." Blaise said slowly, sounding out each syllable as if Draco was stupid. Draco ignored him and continued to stare at the broom.

"Cyclone Velocity. Best broom ever made. So far, anyways." Harry replied casually.

"But how did you get that?" Draco's voice cracked, his face getting a pink tinge to it.

"Money." Harry said simply.

"You guys are such Quidditch nerds." Blaise remarked. "I mean, come on. You carry your brooms in your _pockets_. Who does that? Don't get me wrong, I love Quidditch, but seriously…"

Harry and Draco glared at him. "Just because you don't have a hobby doesn't mean you have to be jealous of ours, Zabini." Harry sneered in a very Slytherin way.

"Psh! I have a hobby. Just…not one most people like to talk about publicly." Blaise winked.

"Ugh! Spare me the torture of listening to your scary sex life again!" Draco smacked Blaise on the head to shut him up. A chuckle erupted from Harry before he could stop it. The two Slytherins stopped their jibing to stare at him. He glared back at them.

"What? It was funny!"

And with that, Harry mounted his broomstick and took off. Blaise and Draco followed and they went their separate ways for a while, enjoying the much-missed sunshine on their upturned faces. Eventually they met back up over the roof of Black Manor and decided to play an altered game of Quidditch. Harry had found an old, rather beat-up practice Snitch in a box on the floor with all the Quidditch stuff and they decided they would all try and get it. Whoever caught it first would be out of the game until the second person caught it again, and then they would be back in the game.

The competition was fierce. Predictably, Harry and Draco had the most skill, and of course they had the fastest brooms, but Blaise was sneaky. In the end, Harry and Draco each caught the Snitch twice, and Blaise caught it once. They all landed several hours later, exhausted and starving for lunch. Harry and Draco had found something in common at last…laughing at Blaise.

Over the next few weeks Harry continued to surprise them with his new attitude. Blaise and Harry became friendly rather quickly. Of course, they didn't have six years of intense hatred and rivalry between them. Draco and Harry were more than slightly uncomfortable around each other. They managed to keep to snide comments most of the time. However, Draco held back from getting into any real fights with Harry because after all, it was his house, and he was the one who had put aside all their hate to save his life. Harry didn't have to hold back all that much…he just wasn't the type to fight when he didn't have to. It was also easier to keep from starting or joining in on fights without his hot-tempered, red-headed friend.

One night they were all sitting by the huge fireplace in the living room. Blaise and Draco were playing a silent game of wizard's chess and Harry was curled up in the big armchair in the corner reading a book on Alamari. He looked up when he heard his name.

"What?"

"Nothing." Blaise replied. "We were just talking about how cool this house is. How long you been living here?"

Harry set down his book. "Not too long. I just inherited it when Sir-when my godfather died."

"Where did you live before this then?""

"Yeah, it must've been pretty sweet. After all, you're as rich as me. Almost." Draco added.

"No. Not really." Harry glared.

"Oh please. It's not as if you had a difficult life. You're the fucking Boy-Who-Lived. You've had instant fame and fortune. Everything handed to you on a fucking silver platter." Draco said bitterly. Blaise sat silently, determined not to get involved with any fights between his best friend and his new friend.

"Me? What about you? You and your rich, snobby attitude. It's not like you've ever wanted anything in your life."

"At least you had people who loved you!" Draco blurted, forgetting about the game. He stood angrily. "Material things…and all that crap. I don't need it. All I ever wanted was someone who cared about me. And not just because I'm the fucking Malfoy heir!"

"Well that may be, but you don't hear me whining about my life! Other people besides you have difficult lives, Malfoy! How about you start thinking about things other than yourself!" Harry's voice got louder as he went on.

"That's easy for you to say! You've been treated like a king ever since you were born!" Draco yelled back.

"NO I HAVEN'T!" Harry finally exploded. "Unless you call being starved and forced to do chores every fucking day since the moment you could walk being treated like a king! I lived in a fucking cupboard under the stairs!"

Draco stood, shocked into silence. Blaise's mouth hung agape. Harry stared for a moment, then a cold mask slipped over his face, as if he was afraid he'd given away too much. He turned around and strode back to his chair, where he sat stiffly and picked his book up again.

"What?" Draco whispered.

Harry slammed his book shut again, rolling his eyes. "You heard me, Malfoy."

"But…but…that's not…I was told…Dumbledore…" Draco shook his head, as if trying to clear out the confusion.

"But-but." Harry mocked. "Dumbledore is the one who put me there in the first place. The old fool. Thought he was doing 'the right thing'."

"How dare they!" Draco spat venomously. "I can't believe those stupid Muggles!"

Blaise stared at his friend. "What the hell, Draco?"

"I am the only one who is allowed to hurt Harry Potter!" Draco thundered furiously. "Now I feel stupid! All those years…just believing everything they told me. What an idiot! Making fun of you for all this time, thinking you deserved it…"

Harry stared for a moment, speechless. Then he burst into uncontained laughter.

"What?" Draco asked, annoyed. His pale eyebrows drew together in disapproval.

"HAHAHAHA!" Harry gasped out. He held his sides, his face red with mirth.

Blaise and Draco just stared. "He's gone nutters." Blaise remarked. "Completely, utterly bonkers."

"B-but you! A-and…hahaha…the only one allowed…" Harry snorted in an effort to stop laughing.

Blaise snorted too. "It is rather funny, now that I think about it. I mean you, of all people. You're worried about him, aren't you?" He suddenly accused.

"What?" Draco said incredulously. "No way! I still hate him; I just can't believe I've hated him for all the wrong reasons. They must all think I'm the most easily influenced person they've ever seen in their lives."

"Oh. Well. Probably." Blaise joked.

"I can't take this…" Gasp "anymore…I'm going to bed." Harry said, taking his book and walking fluidly to the stairs, chuckling the entire way.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Draco woke up screaming, sweat dripping down his face. He sat up, gasping. The door burst open and Blaise rushed in.

"Draco! What happened?" He sat next to him. "You look terrible."

"Thanks." Draco croaked hoarsely. "Water?"

"Sure thing." Blaise conjured a cup. "Here."

Draco sighed as the cool water slid down his raw throat. "Thanks."

"So what happened?"

"It was…strange. It was like a nightmare, only different. I saw-" Draco stopped. Harry had entered the room, wearing only a pair of black silk boxer shorts.

"I heard you screaming. Are-Is everything okay?" He asked.

"Draco just had a strange nightmare." Blaise explained, ignoring the glare the blond was sending him.

"What was it about?" Harry came in until he was standing next to the bed.

Draco hesitated to tell his rival…formal rival…about his strange dream. Finally he decided it didn't matter. It was only a dream, after all…

"I was walking under a waterfall…and I entered this cave. Harry was there, talking to someone. I couldn't see their face. Harry turned and faced me. Someone said something…I don't remember what. Then Harry fell down, screaming in pain. I screamed, then woke up. But the weird thing was, I was scared."

"That's not weird. Nightmares are always scary." Blaise shrugged.

"No…I mean I wasn't scared for me. I was scared for…him."

"Oh. You're right, that is weird." Blaise agreed. Harry stared at Draco with a strange look on his face.

"Was there a snake on the floor?" He asked.

Draco frowned. "Yes. How did you know that?"

"I had the same dream, only from the person in the back of the cave's perspective."

"That's so weird." Blaise commented. "Well now I can't sleep. I'm going downstairs for something to eat. Wanna come?" He invited.

"Might as well. I can't sleep now either." Draco swung his legs over the edge of his bed and slid out.

"I'll come too." Harry followed them down the stairs.

They sat downstairs in the Greenhouse room for an hour or so eating chocolate chip cookies and milk silently. Eventually Blaise got tired and went back up to bed. Harry and Draco fell asleep in the comfortable window seats. Sari came in at some point and covered them with soft blankets.

When they woke in the morning they said nothing about the night before. Instead they silently went back to their rooms to get dressed. Nothing was said until all three of them were in the dining room eating french toast and bacon, and Blaise suddenly jumped about a foot into the air.

"What the hell? Y-your…look at your arm!" He stuttered.

"What? What's wrong with my arm?" Harry swallowed his bacon, looking calmly at his arm.

"It has a…what is that?"

"Oh this?" Harry pointed to the dragon tattoo which was now on his hand, spitting fire which would disappear as soon as it left the dragon's mouth. "That's my tattoo."

"Cool tattoo." Draco glanced calmly at the silver-eyed dragon, who was moving around Harry's arm up his sleeve and onto his back again.

"Ugh. It creeps me out. I hate snakey things." Blaise shuddered violently and went back to eating his meal, keeping one eye on the tattoo suspiciously.

"Well then, why are you in Slytherin?" Harry questioned with one eyebrow raised in amusement.

"Because of my cunning intellect and other sly traits." Blaise replied smugness.

"And humbleness too, no doubt," Harry teased. Blaise chuckled.

"Speaking of snakes, you've got one in your house, Potter." Draco pointed to the corner of the room where a snake with startlingly bright blue and green markings was slithering back and forth, its hooded head looking straight at Harry. Blaise yelped and jumped up on his chair.

"Get it away, get it away!" He yelled. Draco looked on in amusement.

"I don't think I've ever seen you move that fast in your life, Zabini," he commented casually.

Harry chuckled and moved to kneel down by the snake. Its tongue flicked out to taste the air and it hissed. Harry nodded and hissed back.

Draco shuddered. The Parseltongue language was like nothing he had ever heard. It sent shivers of pleasure down his spine.

"It's ok, Blaise." Harry stood with the three foot long snake wrapped in coils around his right arm. "She's not going to hurt you. She just heard there was a man that spoke Parseltongue living in this house and wanted to meet me. There's a bunch of men out in the woods looking to capture her and she would much rather live with someone who understands her."

"What kind is she?" asked Draco coolly, not at all unnerved by the snake looking at him. Blaise climbed nervously down from his chair and sat again, eating his french toast with shaking hands and cautiously watching the snake from the corner of his eye.

"I dunno. Let me ask." Harry hissed some more at the snake on his arm and the snake swayed its head, hissing back. "She's a rare breed from Ireland, a Lalyahan Blue-Tailed."

"Wow. That's really rare. I've heard those are a really magical breed. No one's seen one for years and no one knows what their true powers really are. I've read a lot about snakes." Draco explained at the look Harry gave him. "Lalyahans are extremely loyal snakes. Once they become the companion of a human or other magical being, they stay with them until they die, and will do almost anything for them."

"Yes. She told me she wants to bond to me. All it requires is for her to bite me. Then she will have my blood and her venom will enter my blood. It won't hurt me because of the magic that will bond us before the venom can kill me."

_What'sssss your name?_ Harry asked his new friend.

_You may call me SSSerafina. SSSSera for sssshort._ She answered.

"Serafina, meet Blaise Zabini and Draco Malfoy." He introduced them out loud.

"Erm." Blaise said anxiously. He eyed the snake suspiciously. "Hi. Don't bite me."

"Hello Serafina. Nice to meet you. How do you do?" Draco asked politely.

_I like thisssss tall boy. The other one isssss sssstrange. Tell him I will not hurt him…that much. _Serafina lifted her brilliant blue eyes to stare at Draco.

"Blaise, Sera says she won't hurt you." Harry thought it best to leave the "that much" part out.

Blaise lifted a hand and opened and closed it like a mouth talking. "Blah, blah, blah, look at me, I'm Harry Potter and I can talk to snakes. For all I know, she could've just said she's going to kill me in my sleep."

Draco let a laugh escape at his friend's obvious discomfort. Harry stared at him.

"Oh. My. God. It laughs!" He said with a straight face.

"Of course I can laugh, you prat." Draco said dryly. "It's not like it's the first time."

"First time I've ever seen it. Better put this on my calendar. 'Malfoy laughs for first time. Face is damaged beyond belief. Might heal with time.'."

Blaise began to laugh. "Good one mate!"


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Weeks passed and soon there was only three days left until their return to Hogwarts. Harry had already gotten his school supplies at the beginning of the summer but Blaise and Draco hadn't been to Diagon Alley yet. Harry arranged for his fireplace to be reconnected to the Floo Network since it had been disconnected when Sirius died. They ate breakfast and then Draco and Blaise left around noon to get their school stuff. They came back several hours later just in time for dinner.

Blaise approached Harry, who had spent the day in the library reading more about the Alamari. He hadn't told anyone yet about his heritage, and he wasn't planning on it anytime soon.

"Hey Harry. I got you a few things while I was in Diagon Alley. Here" He handed him a bag of sweets from Honeyduke's.

"Thanks." Harry took the bag. "Did you guys get everything?"

"Yeah." Blaise sat down in the armchair next to Harry's. "While we were there, we went to the Quidditch store, and Draco tried to get the owner to let him buy a Cyclone." He chuckled.

"Tried?"

"Yeah, tried and failed. You should've seen him. He was so pissed off. The owner was terrified out of his wits, but he couldn't give him one 'cause he sold you the only one they had. They won't have another one for at least two months."

Harry laughed. "Good." He put down the book he was holding and picked up another one from the stack in front of him.

"What are you reading?" Before Harry could stop him, Blaise had picked up one of the stacked books and flipped it over to look at the cover. "_Magical Beings Through the Ages_?" He turned the pages to the bookmark Harry had left in it. "Alamari? Any particular reason you're reading about them?"

Harry shrugged. "School paper."

"Oh really? What subject?" Blaise watched his new friend's face carefully.

"Care of Magical Creatures."

"Oh. That's strange. I'm in the same class as you and I didn't get that assignment."

"It's for extra credit?" Harry tried. Blaise just looked at him. Harry sighed in defeat. "You know, you're too much like Hermione for your own good."

Blaise grinned smugly. "I'll take that as a compliment. Wanna tell me what's really going on? Unless, of course, you've been reading books on the Alamari constantly for the entire summer just because…you felt like it."

"No." Harry rolled his eyes.

"So then what's up?"

"I guess I can tell you. But you can't tell Draco." Harry waited until Blaise nodded before he continued.

"Okay so apparently Dumbledork 'forgot' to tell me yet another thing." Blaise laughed at the nickname. "I mean sure, the guy is nice, and I think he had my best interests at heart, but I really think he should have let me decide what was best for me. Anyways, the day after my seventeenth birthday I noticed my eyes were blue and green." Blaise leaned in to examine Harry's eyes.

"Whoa, dude! They aren't green anymore. I never even noticed!"

"Yeah, I kind of put a glamour spell on them. I didn't necessarily change the color; I just kept people from really noticing my eyes. But anyways, I thought it might be because of the eye correction spell I'd had the day before. When I went back, I found out that it had nothing to do with the eye spell. The eye doctor had his brother, a magical scientist, come out and test me. Then I found out," He took a deep breath. "I'm an Alamari."

"You're actually an Alamari?" Blaise raised an eyebrow. "Wow. I thought maybe…uhhh never mind. So have you figured out how to use your power yet?"

"Yeah. Well…kinda. I mean I kind of know what I can do, but the books all seem to leave out how I come into full power. They all say that I'm supposed to grow up showing great power, then the Alamari will remove the barrier placed on me at birth and I come into my full blood. But for some reason nothing much has happened. Some of the books mention something about a mate…maybe once I find mine I'll be able to use my powers. But the thing is…I'm not sure I'll ever find a mate. See, it says there's only a few born every century. I mean, I know I'm supposed to live a long time, but…I don't think I'll ever find another Alamari, and we can't mate to other species. And for us to mate we have to fall in love, which doesn't often happen to my race because there are so few of us, in the wizarding world, at least. It's not that we necessarily have a mate that has already been destined for us, or any of that crap that Veelas and other creatures have to deal with. It's just that once we find someone we're compatible with, we fall in love, and then there's no turning back."

"Oh." Blaise nodded in understanding. "So I guess you want me to keep quiet about this?"

"For now, at least."

"I will, don't worry about me. I can keep a secret better than most. But you should tell Draco." He said casually.

"Why? He would probably just use it against me." Actually, Harry had thought several times about telling Draco. Even if he had been his enemy for years, Draco struck him as a person who could keep a secret. After all, he kept his own life a secret. And besides that, he had never lied directly to Harry. But in the end, Harry always decided against it. Just because he knew Malfoy better now didn't mean he could trust him with something as important as his heritage as an Alamari. Truthfully, deep down, he knew he could trust Draco with his life. They had become close over the summer, closer even than Blaise was with either one of them, but neither would admit it.

As if Blaise was reading his mind, he said, "Come on, mate. You know Draco better than that by now. Especially since he is openly switching sides now, he has no reason to use anything against you anymore. He's your friend, even if you won't admit it.e'sHe"

Harry sighed. "I'll think about it. In any case, I don't think now is the time."

"The sooner, the better." Blaise advised, standing up to leave. "I'm going down to eat dinner. You coming?"

"I'll be there in a minute."

Blaise gave him a sincere smile, which was rare for him. "Don't stay up here too long."

"I won't." Harry watched his newest friend walk out, then leaned back in his chair. He hadn't realized until now how close he had become to the dark haired Slytherin. He considered him one of his best friends now. He wondered how Ron and Hermione would react to this. He had written them several letters telling them what was happening, and they had replied to each letter of his with a piece of parchment twice as long as the one he had sent. Hermione had sent him a lot of useful information about the history of the Alamari and Ron…well Ron was Ron. He basically just thought it was cool that Harry had awesome powers now. When he had told them about Draco and Blaise coming to stay with him, Hermione had congratulated him on forgiving them and Ron had written that he agreed…after a foot of scratched out parchment with little bits of comments showing such as "prat" and "fucking idiot" and "Death Eater spawn". Clearly Hermione had beaten some sense into his hot-tempered red headed best friend.

But there was a question nagging at the back of his mind. Why did Blaise want him to tell Draco so bad? He must know something Harry didn't. Well, he was sure he would find out soon enough. Right now, he could smell mashed potatoes and gravy coming from the stairs, and he was _starving_.

Harry watched Blaise from the corner of his eye all throughout dinner, but the Slytherin acted like his normal, mischievous self. When they finished eating they went into part of Harry's suites where he had a room with a Muggle television in it. Blaise and Draco were fascinated by it. Serafina, who had made herself comfortable coiled around Harry's right arm, found the two wizards' reaction to television hilarious. Over the weeks since Harry had bonded with the intelligent and mysterious snake, Draco had become more than comfortable with the snake. Harry had often found the two curled up together on an armchair in the Greenhouse room, with Draco chatting softly to Sera. Blaise, on the other hand, still jumped whenever she appeared, and seemed nervous whenever she was in the room. Harry figured he would get over it in time.

Harry lay awake in bed for a long time. He had a lot on his mind. What Blaise had said kept running through his head. Should he tell Draco? Blaise wouldn't tell him to tell Draco unless he thought something good would come from it.

_Ssssleep, my dear one. All will work out in the end. _Sera hissed softly from her spot on an extra pillow next to him.

Pondering his many thoughts, he slowly drifted off to sleep. He slept deeply until around ten the next morning.

"Hey, wanna have a last Quidditch match before we're back off to school?" Blaise mumbled through a full mouth of eggs.

"Sure. Don't talk with your mouth full, you pig." Draco wrinkled his nose in disgust, delicately picking up some eggs on his fork.

"Okay, but before we go…I have an idea." Harry grinned. "Ok, I'll write down a number between 1 and 10," He conjured a quill and a piece of paper, "And you guys try and guess what it is."

"Why on earth would I do that for, Potter?" Draco drawled.

"Just do it. Trust me." Harry smirked when Draco rolled his eyes resignedly. "Got 'em? Okay tell me your number."

"Five."

"Blaise?"

"Eight."

Harry showed them the paper. "It was six. Draco's closest. He gets to use my Cyclone."

"Hey." Draco raised his eyebrows. "Thanks."

"What?" Blaise whined. "That's not fair."

"Stop pouting Blaise, I'm sure Harry will let you use his broomstick some other time." Draco wiggled his pale eyebrows suggestively.

"Eww!" Blaise shrieked like a girl. "That is so wrong. Where do you get that gross sense of humor from?"

"I got it from you, you prat."

"Oh. Yeah. Right."

"Seriously though, mate. You can use my Cyclone tomorrow, okay?" Harry reassured his moody friend.

Slightly mollified, Blaise finished eating and stood to leave. Draco waited until he thought Harry wasn't looking anymore and then childishly stuck his tongue out at Blaise with a smug grin. Harry happened to look up from drinking the last of his pumpkin juice at that exact moment and saw his formerly cold and distant nemesis sticking out his tongue like a five year old.

Draco gasped in shock as the cold pumpkin juice that was previously in Harry's mouth sprayed across the table and hit him square in the face. Harry coughed and spluttered, his face turning red with laughter. Draco sat indignantly, drenched in juice. His platinum blond hair fell dripping into his face. Blaise began to laugh at Harry, who was trying vainly to wipe up the mess he had made while still laughing and trying to apologize to Draco.

"Thanks for that, Potter." Draco said dryly, one corner of his mouth trying to tug itself into a smile as Harry fumbled for a napkin and continued to chortle to himself. Draco fought desperately against it, but in the end amusement won out and he let out a laugh. Harry stopped laughing, stared in shock for a moment at Draco, and then began to laugh even harder. Suddenly, all three of them were laughing and none of them could find it in themselves to stop. After a while they calmed down and Draco cast a drying spell on himself. Harry didn't think of that and spent several seconds trying to get pumpkin juice off of his shirt. Blaise sent Draco a warning glance, who looked quickly at Harry to make sure he hadn't seen him using wandless magic. Luckily for them, Harry was still trying to dry himself off.

"For Merlin's sake, Harry! Are you a wizard or what?" Blaise cast a drying spell on the sheepish, dark-haired teen.

"Sorry about that, Malf-Draco." Harry grinned unrepentantly. "It's just that…that was so…unexpected, coming from you."

"Hmph." Draco said loftily. "You hardly know anything about me."

Harry gazed at him thoughtfully. "I guess I don't. Not anymore, at least."

Blaise cleared his throat. "Ahem! Wasting daylight here! Let's go!"

An hour later Harry was flying through the air on his trusty Firebolt. Draco had graciously given Blaise his Hurricane so that he wouldn't whine so much. He slowed down to circle slowly around the roof, looking for the Snitch. He heard a shout and turned his head to the side just in time to see a figure shrouded in black far below them point a wand straight at Draco. Harry was too far away from Draco to do anything but Blaise saw it at the same time as Harry and immediately flew under Draco. The unknown spell hit missed its target and hit Blaise instead, whose eyes rolled back into his head as he fell sideways off his broom.

"Blaise!" Draco panicked.

"You get him, I'll take care of that!" Harry demanded. Draco nodded and flung his hand out to point at Blaise, who froze midair and began to float to the roof gently. Harry leapt across the air to his falling Cyclone and sped toward the ground, where the black figure was running towards the gate. As soon as Harry could see the figure more clearly, he pointed at it, and its robes wrapped around itself, causing the person to trip and fall flat on its face. Harry landed silently beside the black bundle and made a hand motion. The person on the ground flipped over and their hood came off.

"Father?" Draco exclaimed in an anguished voice. Harry almost jumped; he hadn't heard the blond fly down and land next to him.

"Draco!" Lucius snarled. "You have betrayed our Lord! You must die for this!" He struggled against his bonds, his wand just out of reach.

Draco snapped out a hand and the grass his father was lying on grew several feet and stuffed themselves in his mouth as a gag. Harry's eyes widened slightly at the display of wandless magic. He wondered why Draco was all of a sudden more powerful than he had ever been but obviously now was not the best time to ask.

Dull grey-blue eyes glared back at Draco's lively but saddened silver eyes. "I had hoped you would leave me alone after I left, Father. But you can't ever just let things go, can you?" Draco's voice hardened, his eyes burning. "How did you find us, Father? What did you do to Mother when she tried to stop you?" He waved his hand and let his father speak.

"Ungrateful, spoiled child!" Lucius spat. "I gave you everything you could ever want, boy!"

"Material things!" Draco scoffed, proud of himself for not breaking down yet. He couldn't cry, not in front of his father. Not in front of Harry. "Stop changing the subject. Answer my questions! Where's Mother?" He raised his hand threateningly. His father cringed, expecting a slap. "I'm not going to hit you, you fool. I can do wandless magic."

Lucius' eyes widened. "You will never find her. She is hidden away somewhere, deep within the earth, dying. Alone, like she deserves to be. She went behind my back and betrayed me!"

"You bastard!" Draco hissed, stepping closer. Lucius looked coldly at him. "How did you find this place?"

"I have my ways."

"You tortured her!" Draco read the truth behind his father's stony grey eyes.

"She deserved it, that little bi-" Lucius reeled back as Draco finally threw a curse at him with his wand.

Gritting his teeth, Lucius sat back up. "Is that the best you can do, _son_? He said mockingly.

"You're lucky I used my wand. It's less powerful that way. Now get up, you pathetic imitation of a father." Draco glanced at him and the robes disentangled themselves, allowing Lucius to stand.

Harry started forward. "Draco!" He warned, not noticing that he used the angry blonde's first name.

"I have to finish this Harry." Draco told him. Harry nodded in understanding.

"Okay, but I'm here if…in case you need me."

"Look at that. The Gryffindor Golden Boy is protecting you. How pathetic." Lucius sneered, brandishing his wand.

"Harry is not going to interfere. And don't talk about him like that. He took me in when no one else would!" Draco said fiercely.

"_Expelliarmus_!" Draco's wand shot out of his hand to land next to Lucius' feet. Lucius smirked. "It's too bad you didn't turn out better. You are so young and powerful. Well, as they say, youth is wasted on the young. You could have been so much more, Draco. You could have ruled the world."

"I don't want to rule the world, Father."

Lucius smirked. "No matter. Goodbye forever, my son." He raised his wand to kill his son, and it flew out of his hand.

Draco grinned viciously at the tall man's astonished face. "You weren't listening to me, Father, as usual. I can do wandless magic. I have become a powerful creature, a rare one that hasn't walked the earth for a century. Too bad you were on the wrong side. And too bad you'll never be able to take this information back to your beloved _master_." He flicked his hand and Lucius froze in place. "I gave you one more chance, but you failed me once again." He said to the figure with a frozen look of regret on its face.

"Want me to call the Order?" Harry asked softly, coming up behind Draco to lay a hand on his tense shoulder.

"If you don't mind." Draco said tiredly, rubbing his temples.

Harry conjured up a piece of parchment and wrote something on it quickly with the quill that came with it. Then he waved his hand and the paper disappeared. A moment later three Aurors appeared at the nearby gate and walked towards them, looking in shock at the frozen statue that was Lucius Malfoy.

"Arrest this man on the charges of attempted murder." Harry said firmly.

"But…Mister Potter, he's-" began one of the Aurors.

"I am perfectly aware of who he is, Smith! Now take him to Azkaban or I'll do it myself!" Harry snapped, very aware of the fact that Draco was starting to shake.

"Yes, Mister Potter." The Aurors took a hold of Lucius and, with a wave of Harry's hand to let them through the Apparating Wards, they disappeared with a pop.

"We should go get Blaise and see if he's ok." Draco said shakily, trying to move his legs from where they seemed to be glued to the ground.

"I'll see to that." Harry said, steering Draco towards the front door. "What you need to do is go sit down and drink some tea or something."

Draco nodded, finally finding his leg muscles and walking inside. Harry sighed and disappeared with a pop to go get Blaise from the roof. He found the unconscious Slytherin lying completely still and barely breathing. Quickly he picked him up and disappeared with him to reappear downstairs to the living room where Draco was curled up on the big armchair where Harry usually sat and read. He held a cup of steaming hot tea, but his shoulders were shaking with silent tears. He put his teacup down as soon as he saw Harry holding Blaise and ran to them.

"Is he alright? I-I tried to save him b-but then my fath-then…" He trailed off, looking in panic at the only real friend he had ever had.

"I think he got hit with a _Refendus_ charm," Harry told him, gently laying Blaise on the carpet. "It knocks you unconscious and keeps you like that until someone revives you or…until you die. I think that I can fix it though."

"Do it! Please?" Draco pleaded, bending over Blaise.

Harry nodded determinedly and held his hands over Blaise's body. A green glow emanated from his hands and enveloped Blaise. It spread over his body and then retreated.

"Blaise?" Draco's voice broke. "Don't you dare die on me!"

One hazel eye opened. "Didn't know you cared that much, mate." Blaise sat up weakly, leaving heavily against Harry's supporting arm.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

"Oh thank the gods!" Draco let out a huge sigh of relief and hugged his best friend. Harry stood up awkwardly and helped Blaise up with Draco.

Draco's face started to become stony. Harry and Blaise could both tell that he was embarrassed that he had showed such passionate emotion, especially in front of Harry who had never seen him do such a thing. They stood in silence for a minute until Blaise finally said, "Well. This is awkward."

Draco and Harry laughed. The embarrassment fled Draco's face, along with his mask, and the tension was broken. Draco quickly sobered up again.

"What about my mother?" he panicked again. "I have to find her!"

"Draco," Harry said gently. "There's nothing you can do about it tonight. Just try not to think about it, okay? Try to have fun, and we'll work something out tomorrow."

Draco took a deep breath, then nodded. Harry was right. There was nothing he could do at the moment. It was best to try and forget about what had happened until they could do something about it.

That night they all sat playing light hearted games to lighten their moods after the day they'd had. They were playing a wizard game of cards when they somehow got onto the subject of Muggle games. Harry told them about Twister and the two Slytherins thought it was a ridiculous idea, so he conjured up the game and set it up, explaining the rules as he spread out the board.

Five minutes later they were all hopelessly entangled in a mess of arms, legs, feet.

"Get your ass out of my face!" Harry shouted at Blaise, who wiggled it.

"Oh come on, you know you like it." Blaise joked. "Besides, it's easier for me to win while you're distracted."

"Oh yeah?" Draco challenged from under Harry's stomach. "Well I bet I can distract you so well, I'll win."

"Yeah right." Harry laughed as the charmed spinner spun again and they moved their right hands to yellow dots.

"I'm gay." Draco announced.

Nothing happened.

"Well it's not that much of a surprise." Harry informed him. "I mean, how could you not be, using all that hair gel up 'til last year. And you're like obsessed with your looks."

Draco sniffed indignantly. "Well I wasn't aware I was that obvious. Besides, I'd like to see you do better."

The spinner spun again and landed on left foot red. They shifted and shuffled around each other.

"Ok." Harry accepted the challenge. "I'm bisexual, _and _I think Draco is dead sexy."

Draco and Blaise fell down with a thump. "What?" They said in unison.

"Haha! Just kidding!" Harry crowed triumphantly. "I win. Suckers!"

After another few rounds of Twister, they put away the game and sat together in a comfortable silence, eating chocolate truffle ice cream. The events of earlier that day had let Harry see more clearly what Draco had been going through, and Harry's reaction had caused Draco to think over what kind of person Harry was yet again. While they scooped the cold dessert into their mouths, they each thought about what they had gone through that summer. They knew at some point they were going to have to talk about it and get it over with.

"You know," Harry began. "I never thought you could care so much about anyone, Draco." It was easier for them to call each other by their first names now that they knew each other so well, after living together for an entire summer.

Draco looked with what could be called fondness at Blaise, who was staring cross-eyed at his spoon. "Yeah, well. He's the only person who really knew me while I was growing up. And he's the only one who cared what happened to me and understood what I was going through and stuck with me anyway."

Blaise uncrossed his eyes and looked at them. "Aww, stop you guys, I'm gonna start blushing." He teased.

"But seriously, I didn't know that you could be like that." Harry said, ignoring Blaise.

"Ick. This is getting mushy. I'm leaving." Blaise put down his cards and hurried out of the room. Draco ignored him as well, in favor of continuing their conversation.

"Eh. Don't get used to it. But…thanks. You know, for not making a big deal out of me dealing with my…with Lucius." He addressed his father by his first name, thinking it would make it easier for him to stop thinking of him as family. "And thanks for saving Blaise, and being there for me. I mean, I don't know if I would have let you live with me, even if you had nowhere else to go." Draco struggled through his thanks to his friend.

Wait a minute, when had he started to think of Harry as a friend? Was it when he took him in? Was it when he had been living there for a few weeks and he saw how Slytherin the other boy was and how he was much different than Draco thought? Or maybe when he learned about what his life was really like at the Dursley's. Maybe even today when he saved Blaise's life and stood at Draco's back while he dealt with his father.

"You can get used to that. I'm always there for my friends." Harry said seriously. It was the first admittance either of the boys had made to being anything but friendly acquaintances.

Silence reigned for a minute before Draco cleared his throat and switched subjects.

"Wanna play another card game?"

"Sure."

"Your turn to deal."

They played through an entire game of War, a Muggle game which Harry had recently taught to the two Slytherins, before Harry spoke up again.

"Okay, what is it?"

"What is what?" Draco struggled to keep his face blank.

"Oh come on. You've been looking over at me every five seconds as if I'm about to explode or something. There's something bothering you, so just ask already."

Draco kept his expression carefully neutral, but inside he was impressed. Not many people could read him so well. Only Blaise.

"I saw you use wandless magic." He said bluntly.

Harry didn't look up.

"How come you can use wandless magic? Usually wizards can't do that until they are really experienced or…never mind."

"Well I could ask you the same question."

"So you saw?"

"Yes."

"Ah. But I asked first."

"Fine." Harry put down his cards and stared at the table in front of him. _Just say it._ He told himself. _You can trust him now, he's proved it. Sort of. But Blaise trusts him. That's gotta be worth something._ Without preamble, he announced, "I'm an Alamari. It's a magical being from-"

"I know what it is." Draco interrupted.

"Oh. Well, did you know-"

"Yes." Draco said shortly while staring at Harry as if he had grown two heads.

"I didn't even finish my sentence!" Harry said angrily. "How do you know so much about them, anyways?"

"I am one."

Silence.

After a minute, Harry whistled lowly. "Are you serious?"

"Does this look like the face of someone who is joking?"

Harry snorted despite himself. "No, no, definitely not."

"You know this is all your fault, right?" Draco scowled.

"Excuse me?" Harry exclaimed incredulously.

"Harry, you're a fucking magnet for weird stuff. Do you know anyone else who defeated the most powerful Dark wizard in one hundred years six years in a row, not to mention once when they were a baby? Or anyone else who became friends with their lifelong enemy and lived with them for a whole summer and then found out they were both powerful magical beings that only get born like once every hundred years or something? Or-"

"Ok, ok." Harry held up his hands in defeat. "I get the point. So a lot of weird stuff happens to me. But this…is so much weirder."

"For once, I agree."

"Have you found out much about them?"

"Not really. The basics; mostly only things I could find in your library."

"Well 'Mione sent me a few things that could help. I haven't had a chance to look at them yet. Want to take a look with me?

"Tonight?"

"Why not? We don't have anything else to do and once school starts we won't have much

time. And…I dunno…how well…"

"The school will react to us being friends?" Draco finished dryly.

"Yeah." Harry had been worrying about this constantly for the last week or so. He had just barely begun to get to know Draco and now they were going to go back to a world where people expected them to act a certain way.

"Who fucking cares? I'm obviously on the Light side now, and I don't think you're going to be fooling anyone with that Golden Boy act anymore, not with that tattoo, and with Serafina."

Harry held in a sigh of relief, hiding his expression by choosing that moment to pick Sera off his lap and wrap her around his arm. "I guess not. Wha-" He was interrupted by a loud bang and the sound of screeching tires. "Bloody hell? What was that?"

They ran to the front door and opened it to find a bright purple and green spotted car parked just outside Harry's gate, the front end of it dented slightly from running into the gate. An old man with a white beard climbed out.

"Professor Dumbledore?" Harry called, waving his hand to open the gates and let him in.

Dumbledore strode up the pathway with a black tattered hat in his hand. "Hello boys." He greeted absentmindedly. "How are you doing this fine night? Only one day left of summer…how exciting…" He trailed off. "Why Harry, that is a fascinating breed of snake you have there."

"Yes, sir." Draco inwardly shook his head at the old man. "Is there something you needed?" He asked as they all stepped inside and shut the door behind them.

"No, no." Dumbledore answered, following them into the room they had been sitting in when he arrived. "I just wanted to make sure you all had what you needed for school and

such. Where is Mister Zabini?"

Draco opened his mouth to answer, and then closed it. Where _was_ Blaise? "That little sneak." He muttered under his breath. "He just snuck out right in the middle of the conversation…or did he tell us and we just didn't notice…?"

"Excuse me?" Dumbledore said politely with that damn twinkle in his blue eyes.

"Errr…he went upstairs." Harry improvised. "Please make yourself comfortable, sir."

"Ah yes, thank you Harry."

"Sir, is that…that…the Sorting Hat?"

"Oh yes, yes I suppose it is. I can't remember bringing it along. It must have followed me."

"Of course." Draco figured at this point it was best to just smile and nod. Harry seemed to be thinking along the same lines, although he was eyeing the headmaster curiously, as if he was sure the man was not quite as baffled and forgetful as they thought him to be, and had an ulterior motive for bringing along the Sorting Hat.

Dumbledore set the hat next to him on the coffee table and began a random conversation which lasted about two hours into the night. Harry and Draco exasperatedly entertained their guest until finally their professor bid them goodnight and left the same way he had come, banging in to several things on his way down the long, winding driveway.

Harry closed the door with a shake of his head. "Strange man. Powerful, but strange."

_Yessss. _Sera agreed from his arm. _Thissss man hassss a powerful aura sssurrounding him. It issss pure, yessss, but he isss old, and weary of this world._

"Couldn't have said it better myself." Draco nodded when Harry translated. "Now we're going to have to wait until tomorrow to read those books Granger sent us. And where the hell did Blaise go, that little bastard?"

"My guess is he snuck out when we started getting all 'touchy'. He must have somehow known I was going to tell you I was an Alamari. He wanted me to tell you all along, you know."

"So he knew about you? He knew about me too. He's a weird little guy. One minute he seems like a harmless little fellow, then the next he's plotting some sort of crazy plan."

"So he knew all along about both of us." Harry said thoughtfully, walking back into the sitting room to get his books and cards.

"Guess so. Ugh this is too weird. And was it just me or was that the most random visit ever?"

"Nope, it was random-oh! I knew it! That old fool was here for something, I knew it! Look, he left the Sorting Hat here!"

"So?" Draco yawned. "He's senile. Can't blame him for that."

"No, don't you see? He left it here for a reason. Who knows what, but there is one."

"Try it on." Draco suggested. Harry hesitated, then grabbed the hat and stuffed it onto his head.

"Ahh, back again, I see. Are you finally ready to fulfill your destiny, then?" The Hat said aloud.

"Err…what?" Harry asked nervously.

"Are you ready to enter the House you were meant to be in?" The Hat asked impatiently.

"What?" Draco burst out inelegantly.

Sera read his mind through their connection and hissed, _You must go where your heart tellssss you that you truly belong._

Suddenly Harry had a revelation. Surely the Hat was talking about Slytherin…If he switched Houses, he could show everyone his true self, spend more time with Blaise and Draco, and learn more about being an Alamari. He saw only benefits from this. Making his decision, he said firmly, "Yes. I am."

"Excellent choice. Very well, then. SLYTHERIN!"

Harry took off the hat and it disappeared with a puff of smoke. "That meddling old man." He muttered.

"What the fuck, Potter?"


	6. Chapter 6

_Last time…_

"…SLYTHERIN!"

Harry took off the hat and it disappeared with a puff of smoke. "That meddling old man." He muttered.

"What the fuck, Potter?"

Chapter 6

Harry glared murderously at the spot where the Sorting Hat had been.

Draco waved his hand in front of his face impatiently. "Hello? What does it mean, 'your destiny'?"

"When I was Sorted in my first year, the Sorting Hat wanted…to put me in Slytherin. It told me I had a thirst to prove myself, and that Slytherin would help me on my way to greatness. It said 'It's all here, in your head.'."

"No…fucking…way." Draco said slowly.

"Must you swear all the time?" Harry asked irritably.

"Damn right I do."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Anyways, I guess Dumbledore figured it was time he let me do what I was supposed to do. I mean, the only reason I went into Gryffindor in the first place was because I had heard that a lot of wizards who went into Slytherin went bad, and you had just insulted the first friend I had ever made…it just seemed like the right way to go at the time. So I…sort of…convinced the Sorting Hat to put me anywhere except Slytherin."

"You…_convinced_ the Sorting Hat?"

"Pretty much, yeah."

"Unbelievable. Only you could pull that off." Draco shook his head in disbelief. "So does this mean you're in Slytherin now?"

"Guess so." Harry shrugged noncommittally.

Draco quirked a pale eyebrow. "You don't seem all that upset about it."

"Well it's not like I'm never gonna see any of my friends again. And if Slytherin is where I was supposed to be then everything will work out, right?"

"Who knows?" Draco started to yawn and tried to stop himself, but Harry saw anyways.

"We should get to bed."

Draco smirked.

"Not together, you perv!" Harry threw a pillow on the armchair next to him at Draco.

"Well you did admit that you think I'm dead sexy."

"And you fell for it! I can't believe I used to think you were hard to fool."

Draco made an annoyed face and, deciding that it was below his dignity to answer, gathered his things. He blatantly ignored the brunette as he gracefully mounted the stairway. Harry followed him all the way to his room, where Draco whirled around to glare at him. He took one look at Harry's expression and took an involuntary step backwards. His blue and green eyes looked through long black lashes at Draco's bewildered face.

"I'm sorry for saying you were easy to fool. I know you're not, not with the life you've led. But...just so you know," He breathed, leaning toward him, "I have never lied to you."

Draco's mind went blank and he struggled to concentrate on what Harry was saying as his cinnamon-scented breath ghosted across his lips.

The strange glow in Harry's eyes died down and he stepped back. Draco let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding and managed to connect the first thing Harry had said to reality.

"I am easier to fool than you know." Draco murmured. "But thanks. Now, if you don't mind, I would like to get some sleep. It was a rather tiring day."

Harry grinned mischievously and Draco felt a rush of relief at the return of normalcy.

"Why aren't you leaving?" Draco asked, since Harry was just standing there. He didn't move. He tried a different approach. "Leave now!" He commanded regally.

Harry's grin widened. "As you wish…" He turned to go. Draco's eyes narrowed suspiciously. Harry took a few steps, then turned around and winked. "Goodnight _Malfoy_." He continued down the hall. Draco watched him for a while and then shut his door softly.

Harry smirked when he heard Draco's door click shut behind him. It had occurred to him when Draco was telling him how tired he was that the blond was obviously under a lot of stress. And there was also the problem that though they had become…friends, of a sort…they were still far from best friends. They didn't trust each other enough. Strangely, Harry wanted to get to know Draco better. Somehow, he knew the best way to earn Draco's trust was to show him his true personality.

And his true personality was telling him that Draco had had more than enough of sleeping in late in the mornings and that tomorrow morning he should be woken nice and early. After all, it was the last day of summer, and what better way to start the day than with a traditional, old-fashioned prank on his former nemesis?

By the time he had finished getting ready for bed, it was pretty late. He read a few pages of his Quidditch book and then turned out the lights so he would get some sleep and be able to get up early the next morning. He fell asleep quickly, his dreams filled of images of the mystery known as Draco Malfoy.

Meanwhile, Draco was lying half-asleep, wondering if Harry tasted the same as he smelled. Suddenly he remembered that there was a second part to what Harry had said when he had leaned so close. Frowning, he realized that was a way he had used to distract Draco from what he had said. What was it he had said? Something about…never having lied to him. Okay, so Draco could appreciate that he had been honest, but it still seemed like a random comment to him. His eyes widened when he finally realized the implications of what the former Gryffindor had said. They were talking about how Harry said that Draco was dead sexy, and then Harry said he had never lied. So he was telling the truth when he said he thought Draco was hot! And he hadn't been lying when he said he was bi!

Unfortunately, when Draco realized this, he was almost asleep, and as soon as the puzzle had been solved, he fell into a deep, dreamless sleep. And in the morning, he didn't remember thinking about it at all in the first place.

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Morning dawned bright and sunny. Rays of light shone upon the face of Draco Malfoy, fast asleep and unaware of how he was about to be woken up.

Draco sputtered, ice water running in rivulets over his face, plastering his platinum locks to his pale face. He sat up straight in his bed and glared daggers at the other boy standing a safe distance away, wand raised, blinking his green eyes innocently. "Potter!"

Harry smirked and leapt into the hall. Draco sat cross-legged on his bed blinking rapidly for a minute and then chased after him.

"Potter, come back here! I swear, I'm gonna kill you for this!" The only reply he got was Harry's low chuckle from ahead of him. The raven-haired wizard was running as fast as he could down the long hallway towards the stairs, his long legs stretching out underneath him in great strides. Draco couldn't help but notice, even in his indignant fury, that Harry Potter had the nicest ass he had ever seen. Unfortunately for him, this observation led to his attention wandering, and he didn't even see Blaise's door open until he had already run face first into it. With a monumental effort, he kept himself from falling gracelessly onto the ground and managed to stay standing. However, his nose was throbbing like hell.

"Merlin's beard Draco!" Blaise gave him a concerned look. "You alright mate?" Harry had skidded to a stop when he looked over his shoulder and saw Blaise's bedroom door open right in front of Draco. He came running back and examined Draco's nose, which was now turning a nasty mottled purple and red.

Draco glared as fiercely as he could manage while holding his nose and wincing. Harry reached a hand out to touch his nose and Draco flinched back, trying not to let out a whimper. "That hurts," he told Harry.

Harry's features softened. "I know. I'm sorry. Let me heal it."

Blaise gently pushed Draco's hand away from his nose. "Don't worry. You won't feel a thing." Draco was about to ask him how would he know, but then he realized that his friend had already experienced Harry's healing touch. For some reason this made him slightly angry, but he ignored it and concentrated on watching Harry heal his nose. Obviously he had had worse pains than this, but at least the pain of Crucio faded after a while.

By now Draco was basically immune to the curse anyways. He could fight Crucio, just like he knew Harry could fight Imperio. Idly he wondered if there was a way to prevent Avada Kedavra. His train of thought stopped abruptly when Harry stepped so close to him that their faces were almost touching and put three of his fingers on his cheekbone underneath his eye. Draco twitched, then made an effort to keep his face still. Harry trailed his fingers across to the blonde's nose, leaving a sparkling trail of healing magic wherever he had touched. The bruise that had been forming slowly faded, as did the pain. Harry observed vaguely, as he was exploring the area for further damage, that Draco had a cute nose.

"Are we done now?" Blaise shifted his feet impatiently. Harry and Draco ignored him, or else they had just forgotten he was there. Draco stared into Harry's face for a while, Harry staring back at him. Harry still hadn't removed his hand from Draco's nose. Slowly he stroked from his nose down to his soft lips, where he removed his hand and blinked, coming to his senses.

"Yeah we should go eat breakfast now." Harry turned away and caught up with Blaise, who had been slowly stepping away from the two boys and down the hall, impatient for his breakfast. Draco followed, feeling confused. It was only after they were done eating that he realized that in the confusion he had forgotten to get Harry back for waking him up with ice water. He shook his head and smiled slightly. He had, once again, underestimated Harry's cunning.

"Well I won't be doing that again, now will I?" He asked himself as he managed to escape the notice of both Harry and Blaise and sneak into the kitchen in time to pour hot chili powder into Harry's morning pumpkin juice. "It's on, Potter." He chuckled good-naturedly as he stole back into the dining room and took his seat on one side of the table as if nothing had happened.

Somehow the day seemed to pass by faster than normal. The three wizards found themselves finishing another delicious lunch, then wandering about the manor looking for something to do.

"So. Back to Hogwarts tomorrow," Harry commented as they walked through yet another empty hallway.

"Yep." Blaise said. "It'll be nice to be back. We've got some interesting classes we could take this year. Advanced Arithmancy…"

Draco glared at his best friend, effectively stopping what could have turned into a long rant about the many classes Hogwarts had to offer. "Can't say I'm overexcited about classes starting again. Still, it's not too bad there. I can't wait to see everyone's face when we arrive there together." He smirked, nudging Harry with his elbow.

Harry chuckled. Blaise watched this interaction with narrowed eyes. He could see the chemistry between the two boys. There was definitely something there. The more time that they spent together, the more he saw how much they had in common. They had become so comfortable with each other in such a short amount of time. The question was, would they act on it? He would have to wait and see.

The three boys strolled along in a comfortable silence, content that they would have each other's newfound friendship and support for the new school year. Too soon, it was time for bed, and they bid each other goodnight before falling asleep.

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"Harry!" Blaise exclaimed right in his ear. "Harry, we have to go. Come on, get your lazy arse out of bed, we're going to miss the train at this rate."

Harry just groaned and threw an arm over his head. He had slept horribly all night, dreaming about his friend's reactions to him becoming a Slytherin and being close friends with Draco and Blaise.

"You have forced us to do this, Harry. We didn't want to, but just remember that this is your own fault for not cooperating." Draco's voice infiltrated Harry's sleep-induced haze.

"Ugh," Harry commented when his curtains were thrown open, allowing a ray of sun to fall directly across his eyes. "Okay, okay, I'm up."

"Doesn't look like it to me," Draco disagreed. Suddenly Harry's blankets were torn off of him and what felt like a giant bucket of icy water was poured over his entire body. Harry yelped and leapt out of bed.

"Thanks, guys. Are you happy now? I'm up." Harry mumbled grumpily, shivering.

"It was only fair, Harry dear." Draco said smugly. "Go take your shower so we can leave."

Glaring, Harry huffed and stalked off to the bathroom, muttering about how he knew he should have put locking charms on his door.

Laughing, Blaise looked over at Draco, whose eyes seemed to glaze over as he watched Harry walk gracefully into the bathroom, his black silk boxers clinging to his bronzed legs and his hair dripping shiny drops of water onto his muscular back.

"Hey…Draco…" Blaise attempted to get his attention by waving his hand around in front of Draco's face. Draco shook his head as if dispelling the image from his mind and focused in on his friend, who was standing next to him with a raised eyebrow.

"What?" Draco asked irritably. "What are you standing around for? Let's get everything ready to go. We're running late." He walked quickly out into the hall.

"Hmph." Blaise said, unconvinced that Draco hadn't been staring at Harry's arse the whole time.

Finally, everyone was ready to leave. Their bags were shrunk and in their pockets, and they were gathered in front of Black Manor. All of them were sad to leave it behind, as it had become their refuge over the summer. It symbolized a home and the comfort of friendship to them.

"Don't worry, guys. We'll come back for Christmas break." Harry said, reading their expressions.

Sighing, they all turned and apparated into Platform 9 ¾ . As they finished storing their resized trunks on the train, Harry heard a familiar voice.

"Harry!" Was all he heard before a small person rammed full force into him, causing him to get a mouthful of long brown hair in the process.

"Hermione!" He rasped out, trying to get his breath back.

Hermione drew back when she realized she was squeezing him to death, only to take one look at him and pull him into another, more gentle hug. Once again she stepped back, this time taking a good look at him.

"Wow Harry, you look great." She positively beamed at him. "I've missed you so much, but Dumbledore wouldn't allow us to stay with you."

Draco growled lowly from behind Harry. Blaise nudged him curiously. Draco just shook his head and wondered why it made him mad that Granger was so close with his new friend. After all, they had been friends much longer than he and Harry had been.

"You must tell me everything!" Hermione continued, pulling Harry toward the train. Harry just smiled, relieved that his friend truly meant what she had said in her letters when he said he had become friends with two Slytherins.

"Oy, Harry! Wait up mate!" Ron was running up to them, panting and red-faced. "Whew. Almost didn't make it to the train this year. Mum was putting up a fuss over us, as usual." He clapped his hand on Harry's back warmly, seeming not to have noticed Draco and Blaise yet. "So how's it going? Heard you were living with-"

"Me and Blaise," Draco cut in smoothly. Ron turned towards him, his expression for once unreadable.

"Hello Malf-Draco." Ron managed to nod civilly at his rival, surprising them all, except for Hermione, who had a death-grip on Ron's arm. Blaise chuckled, earning him a glare from both Hermione and Ron.

"What are you laughing at?" Ron asked nastily. "Here I am, trying to be nice-"

"We are all going to try and make an effort to be civil for Harry. And when I say all, I really mean _all_ of us." Hermione informed them firmly, a storm brewing behind her normally kind cinnamon brown eyes. Harry and Ron knew the warning signs and quickly soothed her.

"Don't worry 'Mione, we're fine. Let's go find a compartment before anyone else sees us and starts asking annoying questions." Harry looked at her with pleading green eyes and she gave in immediately.

"Fine. But you three had better try to get along or else…"

"Don't worry about us Granger, we'll work it out. We know what awaits us if we don't." Blaise smiled charmingly at Hermione, which stunned her for a moment. Harry laughed and ushered her along into an empty compartment. They didn't make it, however. On the way there Harry was once again attacked by someone. Two someones, actually.

"Harry!" one Weasley twin grabbed him and gave him a giant bear hug, then put him down, only for him to be swept up by the other twin and given yet another hug.

"We've missed you so, Harry." Fred whimpered pathetically, then grinned. "It's been awful trying to enjoy ourselves with only Ronnikins for company this summer holiday."

"Yes, we've missed your cunning wit and sarcasm oh so much." George agreed. Ron glared at his brothers while Hermione fought to keep a straight expression. Draco was doing quite well, while on the other hand Blaise was not having such luck, and kept bursting into random spurts of laughter.

"Ahh," Fred commented thoughtfully with a completely straight face. "So the evil Slytherins do have a sense of humor. That will bear some study, right there, won't it Forge?"

"It certainly will, Gred." George said with just as serious an expression. Then he broke out into a grin again. "Well, we better get going. Just wanted to say hi. Mum made us come back to school to finish our last year, so we've got a lot of catching up with old friends to do."

"Ta." Fred swept Hermione up into a hug before they disappeared. "See ya, Granger."

Hermione hoped that no one noticed the two bright spots of red on her cheeks after Fred put her down. Unfortunately for her, Harry, Draco, and Blaise all noticed and exchanged looks. They decided to say nothing and let nature run its course. On the other hand, Ron was being completely and blissfully ignorant, as usual, and escaped into the compartment they had been about to enter before being accosted by his brothers. The others followed him, then sat down with Hermione, Harry, and Draco on one side, and Ron and Blaise on the other side.

Blaise leaned over and whispered in Ron's ear, "I didn't want to sit next to Granger. She seems like she has an awful temper and I wouldn't want to get in her way."

Ron snorted. "She does." Then the tips of his ears turned bright red when he realized he was agreeing with a Slytherin. Blaise laughed at his mortified expression and leaned back comfortably in his seat.

Hermione started talking animatedly with Harry about where they could find more information on the Alamari. Draco was content to sit back and think quietly to himself, while Blaise and Ron tried awkwardly to make civil conversation.


End file.
